1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and to a device for measuring the deformation capacity of living cells, such as red blood corpusles.
It is known that the capacity of deformation of red cells plays an essential role in their functions and their life span and constitutes a valuable indication relating the quality of the hemoglobin, the structure of the wall and other characteristics, so that the measurement of this deformation capacity is now used for exploration and diagnosis of different disorders, notably hematological.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Numerous techniques have already been proposed to measure the deformation capacity of red blood corpusles. A particularly accurate and practical method is to be found in French Pat. No. 74 16160 published under No. 2,270,557 and consisting of placing a liquid containing red blood corpuscles in suspension between two transparent coaxial walls and communicating to these two walls different rotary speed, with respect to their common axis, causing a parallel beam of light to pass through the liquid, substantially normal to this common axis, to obtain a diffraction pattern on which the characteristic dimensions of the diffraction rings as a function of the differential speed of the two walls, are measured.
In fact, the speed of flow gradient caused by the difference of rotary speeds ensures, through the corresponding shearing effect, a good deformation of the whole of the suspended cell population passing between the walls.
This method, if it gives entire satisfaction, necessitates however the use of a relatively complex device with two coaxial cylindrical walls movable in rotation with respect to one another, means for imparting to these walls different rotary speeds with respect to their common axis and means for directing a light beam, notably of coherent monochromatic light, perpendicularly to the common axis through the flow thus generated.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a method for measuring the capacity of deformation of living cells such as red blood corpuscles, which is easy to put into operation and not laborious, whilst providing measurement results which can achieve very high accuracy.
Another object of the invention is to provide a method which enables very easily, exploration by variation of one or several of the parameters of the medium containing said bodies, and notably the red blood corpuscles.
Another object of the invention is to provide a particularly simple, economic and reliable device for measuring the deformation capacity of microscopic bodies, and notably of living cells such as red blood corpuscles, enabling easy practising of the aforesaid method.